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Scottish Anglicans seek new way forward on gay row

-24/03/05

The recent statement re-affirming the role of gay people in the priesthood, made by the college of bishops in the Scottish Episcopal Church in response to the Windsor Report of the worldwide Anglican Primates, has been welcomed as ìan important steps forwardî by those seeking a more positive climate of debate on issues of human sexuality.

ìThe Scottish Episcopal Church is just recognising that lesbian and gay people are made in God’s image and have gifts to share,î according to Fr Richard Jenkins, director of Affirming Catholicism, an influential network within the Anglican churches in England, Scotland and Wales ñ and one co-founded in 1990 by Dr Rowan Williams, who is now the Archbishop of Canterbury.

The gay rights group Stonewall has also welcomed the Churchís stance. A spokesperson said: ìIt strikes us as a real pity that the Anglican Church has been tearing itself to pieces over what seems a relatively trivial issue when they could be [doing more to tackle] pressing matters like world poverty or the Aids epidemic.î

The bishopsí statement, which was issued on 4 March 2005, but has achieved wider publicity over the past three days, reiterates that ìthe Scottish Episcopal Church has never regarded the fact that someone was in a close relationship with a member of the same sex as in itself constituting a bar to the exercise of an ordained ministryî.

But, stresses the Churchís general secretary, John Stuart, ìthe bishops’ statement also affirms the value accorded by the bishops to the place of the Scottish Episcopal Church within the Anglican Communion and indicates that the college would seek to work to preserve the unity of that communion. It expresses the hope that publication of the Windsor report will result in discussion ëacross differenceí and that the bishops commit themselves to facilitate such discussion.î

The statement says the bishops are “conscious that as a church we are much indebted in our life both to a significant presence of persons of homosexual (lesbian and gay) orientation, and also to those whose theology and stance would be critical of attitudes to sexuality other than abstinence outside marriage . . . we rejoice in both and it must be our prayer that discussion following the Windsor report and the primates’ meeting will enable the energy of both to be harnessed to serve the church and the proclamation of the gospel.î

This view differs from the majority in the worldwide Anglican Communion worldwide, which has been involved in vituperative arguments following the consecration of openly gay US Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson in New Hampshire, and the blessing of same-sex relationships within the Anglican Church in Canada.

ìIf someone who was of a homosexual orientation felt a sense of call to the ordained ministry then we would begin the process of testing that vocationî, said the Most Rev Bruce Cameron, Primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church, which claims some 50,00 adherents.

The Scottish bishops add: “We are conscious that as a church we are much indebted in our life both to a significant presence of persons of homosexual orientation, and also those whose theology and stance would be critical of attitudes to sexuality other than abstinence outside marriage. We rejoice in both.î

The Primus, who is also Bishop of Aberdeen and Orkney, said the Church was simply encouraging debate by stating the beliefs on which the Scottish Anglican tradition already operates.

There is now speculation that hard-line Anglican conservatives, who have been declaring themselves out of communion with those who disagree with their anti-gay stance, may seek formal censure of the Scottish Episcopal Church.

ìThe conservatives claim to be a majority within a worldwide Communion of some 78 million Anglicansî, a commentator told Ekklesia today. ìIf this is really so, it would look odd to be threatened by such a small Church, which is in any case not saying anything new, but simply re-stating existing pastoral practice and theological understanding. It is also going out of its way to seek further dialogue in the midst of disagreement.î

ìThe Scottish Episcopal Church is not seeking confrontation, it is seeking a new way forwardî, he added.